1. Field
The present invention relates to wireless communication systems generally and specifically, to methods and apparatus for handoff for a packet data service.
2. Background
Mobile Internet Protocol (IP) is intended to enable nodes to move from one IP subnet to another, from one Ethernet segment to another, and from an Ethernet segment to a wireless LAN. The intent is for the IP address of a Mobile Node (MN) to remain the same over a given movement. As long as node movement does not occur between points of attachment on different IP subnets, link-layer mechanisms for mobility (i.e., link-layer handoff) may offer faster convergence and far less overhead than Mobile IP. A problem exists in providing compatibility between different protocols, and the various revisions of such protocols. Specifically, as new protocols are introduced, they may create conflicts with previous revisions and protocols.
There is a need, therefore, for compatibility between different wireless communication and data transfer protocols. Specifically, there is a need for a backward and forward compatible interface for Mobile IP protocols.